Category Archives: EC Blogs
The Ride of a Lifetime
This year has been a roller coaster year with my first year at college. All of the people I’ve met, the classes I’ve had the pleasure of taking. This year has been one of the most memorable experiences of my life and now, it’s time to continue on this journey and keep my hands in the air as I travel along the tracks of this coaster. So many choices had to be made leading up to this point and have all added a piece to the coaster I am riding.
At Oklahoma State, I have been involved in many media classes, one of which had me start a blog and create this website. Up until this point, all of the posts were assignments, writing in our own voice about various articles. I hope to continue blogging my thoughts to hone in these skills. I look forward to seeing where this website takes me and how it will influence the tracks of this coaster.
I can’t believe I’m about to start my junior year at Oklahoma State. This new year will bring in new experiences, new opportunities, and of course, new choices that will make this roller coaster even more extreme. I hope to keep riding this coaster, hands in air, screaming my lungs out. So, time to see where this coaster takes me. It’s been the ride of a lifetime. And, as always,
Ride ’em, Cowboys.
Remembering Roger
Roger Ebert, the man who revolutionized movie reviews with the thumbs-up rating died this week. (Photo courtesy of Gerd Altmann/pixabay)
The man who created the “thumbs-up, thumbs-down” rating system passed away this week and it is with great sorrow I write this post. I found an interesting article by Christie Lemire remembering the man behind the reviews. The thing that amazed me about Roger Ebert was his work outside of movie reviews. He did a fantastic job educating the public about a wide variety of topics not even closely related to movies, and he did all without being able to talk.
Roger Ebert created a sense in everyone that they knew him, even though most people never got the chance to meet him. He created a legacy of reviews and work that spanned generations and will continue to affect journalism for years to come.
Cheers, Roger, and may I say, five fantastic thumps-up on your work!
All You Need is a Phone and Instagram
Nick Laham made the front page with an iPhone and Instagram. Who needs professional equipment, anyway? (photo courtesy of Gerd Altmann/flickr)
With baseball season just hours away from starting, I found this article about a New York Yankees photographer, Nick Laham. His pictures are all taken on his iPhone and edited in Instagram. And they made the front page of the New York Times. This should inspire anyone to be a photographer and has started a war between iPhone and traditional photographers.
I love the fact that Laham showed how simple it is to make a picture look professional without shelling out a ton of cash for expensive equipment. In this age of technology with reporters adapting to Twitter why shouldn’t photography evolve, too? To all the traditional photographers who hate his success, maybe you should try an iPhone and Instagram and see what you can come up with. Maybe it’ll actually be front-page material.
Blade Runner: Trigger Puller
By know, you’ve all heard the name Oscar Pistorius. Like a bullet, his name came into the media when he became the first double amputee to compete at the Olympics. And now, his name has pierced the media once again after the apparent murder of his girlfriend. So, I decided to get to know a little bit more about this “Blade Runner.” Amid all the controversy, I wanted to find out the real Oscar Pistorius and you can read about him here.
Before the Olympics, all that surrounded Pistorius was whether he had an advantage with his blades compared to human feet. Now, he’s in the middle of controversy once again. IS that what this guy thrives on or something? Yeah, we get it. You have no legs and that’s a big source of adversity, but seriously, controversy is not a good thing to have at the center of your life! I hope this guy can learn that and hopefully just go out and run his races. He’s a great athlete, but I’m done with hearing about all the controversy in his life, let’s see and focus on some accomplishment, people!
Forget Allowance—Just Get Off Facebook.
One girl is getting $200 for staying off Facebook. I would “like” getting paid, too, if I could. (photo courtesy of Sean MacEntee/flickr)
Have you heard about the 12-year-old girl who made a deal with her dad to get $200 dollars if she stayed off of Facebook for five months? If not, check out the Los Angeles Times article. If you have, you’re probably thinking one of two things. Either one: why didn’t I think of that? Or two: I could be rich if I were this girl.
I’d get off of Facebook right now and start banking in the cash if I could. Facebook is a great way to stay connected, but it’s definitely starting to get to be boring and will stay that way until it starts to make some major changes. And for five months? You can survive with a smart phone for five months. Maybe we should all get off Facebook for five months. Get outside. Grab pen and paper and write a letter to stay connected. And hey, if you can make a deal with your dad, maybe you can get $200.
Kaepernicking: It’s Not the New Tebowing
Ray Lewis and Colin Kaepernick (photo courtesy of Mike (RMTip21)/flickr)
With the Super Bowl just hours away, it’s important for fans to get to know the story lines of the game. Unfortunately, all that’s being publicized is the Harbaugh brothers, Ray Lewis’ retirement and the rise of Colin Kaepernick. For a look at some of the other stories surrounding the game look at J. Ryan Stradal’s article here.
Now, while I enjoy these big story lines, they’ve been beat to death and the game hasn’t even started. On Twitter, #HarBowl is set to be trending topic and during the game, you can be sure the announcers will talk about this for quite awhile. Ray Lewis will be the focus of discussion on the Raven’s side of the ball with this being his final NFL game. And I’m tempted to press mute on the TV whenever one of these subjects comes up.
As for Colin Kaepernick, remember Tim Tebow and the “Tebowing” sensation. Tebow led his team to the AFC divisional round (where they got killed by the Patriots), then got bumped to being a backup for a sub-par team in New York. I’m not saying Kaepernick’s story will be exactly the same, but every Cinderella story has it’s end and for Colin Kaepernick, the story ends here. Ray Lewis and the Ravens will be too much for this young QB to handle and soon, Kaepernick might just be a backup again.
Pressure. Unbelievable Pressure.
University of Wyoming logo (photo courtesy of Alan Levine/flickr)
We’ve all been there. Our team has one last chance to win the game and the kicker is on the field. Unbelievable pressure on that one man. Nathan Noble is no stranger to pressure, though.
I commend his service for this country. I thank him for it. I commend his efforts for pursuing an education and wanting to walk on at Wyoming, but lets be honest. Wyoming hasn’t been a powerhouse in college football for quite some time with only four winning seasons since 2000. If you really want to try to make a name for yourself, go somewhere other than Wyoming.
And a kicker? If you wanted to be the leader on the field, go with QB. The kicker has a lot of pressure, but the kicker is definitely not the leader of a football team. In Wyoming’s history, only one kicker has been drafted. Good luck, Nathan. At least you can deal with the pressure.
Justin Packard 